The present invention pertains to order fulfillment systems and methods and, in particular, to such systems and methods which supply both a product container and one or more order containers to an operator for the operator to transfer goods from the product container to the order container. Such systems and methods are referred to as goods-to-person picking systems and methods.
Goods-to-person picking systems and methods typically include one or more pick stations. While the picking is typically carried out by a human operator, the operator is guided in the picking. Such guidance may be by wireless headsets generating pick commands, known as pick-to-voice systems. Alternatively, the guidance may be by a display system which provides visual displays of how many articles from a donor container are to be transferred to the order container, as well as confirmation buttons, and the like, known as pick-to-light systems.
In addition to the pick station(s), the goods-to-person picking system may include a container storage system which stores and retrieves product containers, as well as full or partially complete order containers. Also systems are provided to remove empty donor containers and supply empty order containers. Transportation links, such as conveyors or automated guided vehicles, interconnect the storage system, the pick stations, shipping areas, and the like. While the container storage system may take various forms, an example of such a system is disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Application Publication No. 2011/0008138 A1 entitled TRANSFERRING SHUTTLE FOR THREE DIMENSIONAL AUTOMATED WAREHOUSE and U.S. Pat. Application Publication No. 2011/0008137 A1 entitled AUTOMATED THREE DIMENSIONAL WAREHOUSE, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.